<!DOCTYPE html>
<html>
<head>
<meta charset="UTF-8">
<title>all i want for christmas is you (and my six closest friends) by mylifeiskara</title>
<style type="text/css">

body { background-color: #ffffff; }
.CI {
text-align:center;
margin-top:0px;
margin-bottom:0px;
padding:0px;
}
.center   {text-align: center;}
.cover    {text-align: center;}
.full     {width: 100%; }
.quarter  {width: 25%; }
.smcap    {font-variant: small-caps;}
.u        {text-decoration: underline;}
.bold     {font-weight: bold;}
</style>
</head>
<body>
<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28351119">all i want for christmas is you (and my six closest friends)</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/mylifeiskara/pseuds/mylifeiskara'>mylifeiskara</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The 100 (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Christmas Fluff, F/M, Fluff, Found Family, Minor Echo/Raven Reyes, Minor Emori/John Murphy (The 100), Minor Monty Green/Harper McIntyre, Spacekru Christmas!</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 20:55:27</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Teen And Up Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>6,742</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28351119</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/mylifeiskara/pseuds/mylifeiskara</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>It's a running joke between Bellamy and his college friends that he is forever single when the rest of the group has taken to just dating each other. Monty and Harper are married with a baby, Murphy and Emori are together with a baby on the way, and Raven and Echo just got engaged. So it's a shock to everyone when Bellamy says he's bringing his girlfriend Clarke to their annual Christmas party.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Bellamy Blake/Clarke Griffin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>26</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>119</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Collections:</b></td><td>bellarkescord advent calendar</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>all i want for christmas is you (and my six closest friends)</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>Hello! </p>
<p>This is a little fic I wrote for the bellarkes discord advent calendar. It was initially supposed to be more Bellarke than it ended up being, but I got carried away with Bellamy's friends lovingly roasting him lol whoops. But it's still fun, so I hope you enjoy!</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">Bellamy pulls into Murphy and Emori’s driveway, a wave of excitement hitting him, not for the first time this evening. It’s tradition that he and his college friends gather for a Christmas party each year, but Bellamy is even more excited because this year his best friends get to meet Clarke. They’ve been dating for almost a year now, and Bellamy couldn’t be happier. He can’t wait for his friends to meet the woman who might possibly be the love of his life. Because in the past, he hasn’t always been so lucky.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy was lucky enough to be matched with John Murphy as his freshman roommate. They got along and quickly became friends, which is a lot more than some other people living on their floor that year could say. They added Monty Green to their group not much longer after that. Monty was Murphy’s lab partner in his chemistry class and helped Murphy narrowly avoid setting himself on fire. Their group of three was practically inseparable their first semester of college.</p>
<p class="p1">Raven, Emori, Harper, and Echo came later, although technically Bellamy did meet Raven before he met Monty. He and Raven hooked up one of the first weekends of their first semester, and Bellamy was surprised to see her again in his English class the next semester. They were the only competent members of their group presentation, so they commiserated about their group mates together and quickly became friends. Raven brought Emori to lunch one day, and she easily fit in with the rest of the group. Bellamy met Harper in his early childhood learning elective sophomore year and decided that she would be perfect for Monty, so he set the two of them up. Echo rounded out the group, as a transfer student in her junior year. Emori had a class with her and invited her to eat dinner with the rest of them.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy has never had such a consistent group of friends, and he cherishes all of their moments together, specifically their first Christmas party during their senior year. None of them ended up going home for the holidays that year, so they all spent the day together in Bellamy and Murphy’s apartment. Murphy baked an absurd amount of cookies, they all drank too much of Monty’s homemade moonshine, and they played games and did a white elephant gift exchange. It’s one of Bellamy’s favorite college memories and they quickly decided it had to become a tradition.</p>
<p class="p1">Nine years later, not much has changed with their group. Nowadays they have their celebration on the 26th, so they can spend the actual holiday with their own families. Each year, they gather either at Monty and Harper’s or Murphy and Emori’s for a festive night, and it’s always one of Bellamy’s favorite days of the year. The biggest difference now is that all of his friends ended up dating each other, and Bellamy is the perpetually single one.</p>
<p class="p1">When Raven invited Emori to have lunch with them during their freshman year, Bellamy could tell that Murphy was instantly smitten. They both seemed into each other, though they didn’t do anything about it until they hooked up at the end of the year, and again during sophomore year. They finally admitted their feelings for each other and began dating for real junior year, and they’ve been together ever since, now with a baby on the way. Bellamy had a feeling that Monty and Harper would like each other, so when he invited her to lunch after class, he barely had to do any work to get the two of them together. Now they’ve been married for three years, and they have Jordan, the sweetest one-year-old that Bellamy has ever met. Even Raven and Echo ended up together. The two of them didn’t fall into dating as immediately as Monty and Harper or Murphy and Emori, but they got together right before graduation and they just got engaged on Christmas. That just leaves Bellamy.</p>
<p class="p1">It’s been a running joke for years that Bellamy is forever single. Murphy claims it’s because he’s a grumpy old man in disguise, but Bellamy doesn’t mind all that much. He just hasn’t found the right person and he doesn’t want to waste anyone’s time. That’s not to say he never gets lonely, and of course he wants what his friends have been able to find with each other. And he thinks that now he’s found that with Clarke.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy met Clarke Griffin two years ago at a ski resort when he was on a weekend trip with his sister Octavia and her fiancé Lincoln. They hit it off and spent most of the weekend together, then exchanged numbers. They texted from time to time, though they never made plans to actually see each other, probably because Bellamy was too chicken to officially ask her out. Even though they never planned it, they always had a habit of running into each other. It started to get a bit ridiculous, so when they ran into each other at the grocery store on Christmas Eve, Bellamy swallowed his doubts and took a chance on asking Clarke out. She said yes, and Bellamy went to his friends’ Christmas party sharing that he met a girl he really liked. He was met with laughter, but Bellamy couldn’t bring himself to care. He was excited that there might be something potentially there with Clarke, and it turns out he was correct.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy puts the car in park and turns off the ignition. He looks at Clarke and smiles. She smiles back, though it’s more muted than normal.</p>
<p class="p1">“What’s wrong?” he asks, reaching over to put a hand on her knee.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke shakes her head. “It’s nothing.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy raises an eyebrow. “Clarke. You can tell me.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m just a little nervous. I mean, from the way you talk about your college friends I know how important they are to you. I want to make a good impression.”</p>
<p class="p1">He leans over and presses a quick kiss to her lips. “They’re gonna love you. All they want is for me to be happy, and when they see that you make me happy, that’ll be all that matters.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke smiles. “Okay.”</p>
<p class="p1">“You ready?” he asks.</p>
<p class="p1">She nods and Bellamy gives her hand one last squeeze before getting out of the car. He takes his white elephant present from the backseat before meeting Clarke on her side of the car. He laces her hand with his and they walk to the front door together.</p>
<p class="p1">It still cracks Bellamy up that Murphy and Emori somehow ended up with a house in the suburbs. Back in college, they were the most wild of the friend group, the ones to come up with the most outlandish suggestions for things to do on their Friday nights, some of which were very illegal and quickly shot down by most everyone in the group (except Echo, on occasion). Maybe it’s a product of being reckless in their youth that they’re so domestic now. But it’s kind of hilarious given that Bellamy’s known them both for as long as he has.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy rings the doorbell and he looks to Clarke one last time. She seems calmer now, though he can feel a bit of nervous energy radiating from her still.</p>
<p class="p1">After a moment, Murphy answers the door, a big grin on his face. Over his green turtleneck and jeans he’s wearing a festive apron that has a reindeer with lights tangled in its antlers on it. Bellamy suppresses a laugh, a little too filled with glee at the sight of one of his best friends in a very out of character outfit.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy looks from Bellamy to Clarke and then frowns. “Who is this?”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy frowns. “Murphy, this is Clarke. My girlfriend.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy looks between them again, his eyes wide. “You’re <em>real</em>?”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke chuckles. “Yeah, I’m standing right here.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Sorry. It’s just when Bellamy mentioned how you guys met, it seemed a little too ridiculous. I thought he made you up.”</p>
<p class="p1">“You thought I made up a girl I’ve been talking about for a whole year?” Bellamy asks in disbelief.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke snorts beside him, so at least she finds this all funny. Bellamy’s a little too annoyed at Murphy to find this all that amusing.</p>
<p class="p1">“You don’t date!” Murphy protests.</p>
<p class="p1">“I do now!” Bellamy shouts. “Can you let us inside, please? It’s kind of cold out here.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Let them in, John!” Emori calls as she makes her way to the door. She’s way more pregnant than the last time Bellamy saw her, and she has a bit of a waddle now.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy steps aside to let Bellamy and Clarke in. Bellamy smiles as he meets Emori for a hug. He and Emori are the huggers of the friend group, but they haven’t traded any bone-crushing hugs lately because of the baby. He pulls away and frowns at her sweater. It matches Murphy’s apron, with a reindeer with lights tangled up in its antlers prominently displayed on her belly. He makes a note to come back to their outfits, but turns to Clarke so he can introduce her properly.</p>
<p class="p1">“Murphy and Emori, this is my girlfriend Clarke. Clarke, this is Murphy and Emori. They’re basically common law married.”</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s nice to meet you, Clarke!” Emori says, pulling Clarke in for a hug. “For the record, not all of us thought Bellamy made you up.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke chuckles. “It’s nice to meet you, too! And don’t worry, Bellamy warned me about Murphy, so I was a little prepared.”</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s honestly a relief you’re real,” Murphy says. “Now I don’t have to worry that Bellamy has officially lost it from loneliness.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy rolls his eyes. “Okay, enough about me. I have to ask. What the fuck are you two wearing?”</p>
<p class="p1">“Hey!” Murphy warns. “If I’m not allowed to swear because the baby can hear me, you’re not allowed to swear either.”</p>
<p class="p1">Emori laughs, linking her arm with Murphy’s. “You don’t think it’s cute?”</p>
<p class="p1">“I mean I guess it’s cute. But I used to watch you two do hard drugs for fun, so it’s a little confusing.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy shrugs. “We figure if we’re almost parents, we might as well just start dressing like ones now.”</p>
<p class="p1">“How far along are you?” Clarke asks Emori.</p>
<p class="p1">“34 weeks, so coming up on the homestretch!”</p>
<p class="p1">“Oh, that’s exciting! Do you know what you’re having?”</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s a girl.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Congratulations! You guys must be so excited.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy presses a kiss to Emori’s forehead. “Yeah, we’re pretty stoked.”</p>
<p class="p1">“But enough about us! Let me take your coats and John can get you guys something to drink,” Emori says.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy and Clarke hand their coats off to Emori before following Murphy into the kitchen.</p>
<p class="p1">“Clarke, Bellamy is always wildly on time for these things. Nobody ever shows up this early. And then he has the nerve to not really help,” Murphy says.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy scoffs. “The last time I helped you got mad and said I wasn’t chopping the vegetables properly.”</p>
<p class="p1">“At least offer and give me the chance to say no.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke leans in to whisper in Bellamy’s ear. “It seems you’re not playing by Murphy’s very specific rules.”</p>
<p class="p1">He chuckles and rubs her arm as they watch Murphy open the fridge.</p>
<p class="p1">“We’ve got beer and wine. Raven’s bringing tequila, but she and Echo always show up last, so don’t hold your breath for that.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Whatever white wine you have is fine,” Clarke says.</p>
<p class="p1">“Beer, Bellamy?”</p>
<p class="p1">“Yes, please.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy gets their drinks and pours himself a glass of wine. Emori comes into the kitchen and Murphy takes a bottle of sparkling cider out of the fridge and pours a glass for her.</p>
<p class="p1">“So Clarke,” Murphy begins. “You’ve managed to capture Bellamy’s attention for longer than anyone ever. Good for you.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy feels his face heat up as Clarke laughs. “That makes me sound like an asshole.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke pats his arm. “Not an asshole. Just highly selective.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And that means you must be pretty special to have passed the test,” Emori says. “Bellamy’s never brought anyone to Christmas before, so we’ve never been able to be protective friends and grill someone with invasive questions.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Not too invasive,” Bellamy says, giving Emori a warning look. For as domestic as she seems now, he knows she’s still a bit of a troublemaker. It’s why she and Murphy work so well after all these years.</p>
<p class="p1">“None of you guys have ever brought someone else to this party?” Clarke asks.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy laughs. “Oh, Bellamy didn’t tell you? We all started dating each other at different points in college. So he’s always been the odd one out. None of us were ever good enough for him.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Raven and Echo did invite him to be their third once,” Emori points out.</p>
<p class="p1">“That was a one-time thing,” Murphy says, shaking his head.</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m convinced it would’ve turned into something more if he had taken them up on it.”</p>
<p class="p1">As Murphy and Emori continue to debate Bellamy’s love life, Bellamy is hit with a wave of nerves. His friends are such a close-knit group, he’s worried that Clarke is going to spend most of the evening being confused. That wasn’t something he had considered before bringing her. He just wanted all of his friends to meet her, especially after he knew he wanted her to stick around. Thankfully the doorbell rings, and Emori gets up to answer it. She comes back into the kitchen after a moment with Monty, Harper, and Jordan in tow. Monty is laden down with Jordan’s diaper bag, which Bellamy has always thought was a bit too big, but he doesn’t have a kid so he doesn’t know what the barometer is.</p>
<p class="p1">“You know, considering how much work it takes to get a child ready to leave the house, you probably should have let us host this year,” Monty says in greeting.</p>
<p class="p1">“You have one more month to make that excuse, man. Next Christmas you won’t be the only ones with a kid,” Murphy answers.</p>
<p class="p1">“Bellamy!” Harper smiles and Bellamy jumps up to give her a hug.</p>
<p class="p1">“Harper, it’s so good to see you,” he says before turning his attention to Jordan. “Hey, Jordan. How’s my favorite little guy?”</p>
<p class="p1">Jordan gives a shy smile before ducking his head into his mother’s shoulder.Bellamy laughs before moving to hug Monty as well.</p>
<p class="p1">“Guys, this is my girlfriend Clarke. Clarke, this is Monty and Harper and their son Jordan.”</p>
<p class="p1">Monty and Harper both smile as they meet Clarke, but Bellamy’s known both of them long enough to see the looks of surprise that they were quickly able to mask.</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s so nice to finally meet you, Clarke,” Harper says. “Bellamy talks about you so often, but I feel like he still hasn’t told us very much, so we’re glad you’re here.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Yeah, so now we can learn more straight from the source,” Monty adds.</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s nice to meet you guys,” Clarke says before getting up from her chair and making her way over to Harper. She looks at Jordan, a bright smile on her face. “It’s nice to meet you too, Jordan.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Can you say hi to Clarke, Jordan?” Harper asks her son. Jordan keeps himself firmly tucked into Harper’s shoulder, but Bellamy’s heart warms at Clarke’s valiant effort to make friends with a shy baby.</p>
<p class="p1">Monty chuckles. “He usually takes a minute to warm up, but he’s very friendly.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And very animated and loud. But only when we’re at home,” Harper says with a laugh.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke smiles. “It’s okay. I’m a pediatric nurse, so I’m used to it. How old is he?”</p>
<p class="p1">“14 months.”</p>
<p class="p1">“So it makes sense that he’s a little clingy. Maybe we can hang out later, huh Jordan?”</p>
<p class="p1">The doorbell rings again and Bellamy and his friends look at each other in shock.</p>
<p class="p1">“What is it?” Clarke asks.</p>
<p class="p1">“Raven and Echo are never this early,” Murphy says as he goes to get the door.</p>
<p class="p1">“Oh my god, we get to see the ring!” Harper squeals, handing Jordan off to Monty and running after Murphy.</p>
<p class="p1">“You can’t go that fast, I can’t keep up!” Emori shouts as she waddles after them.</p>
<p class="p1">“I don’t see why Mommy had to hand you off to me for this,” Monty coos to Jordan as he follows them into the hallway.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy turns to Clarke, glad that she looks more amused than anything else. He takes her hand and gives it a squeeze.</p>
<p class="p1">“You good?”</p>
<p class="p1">She smiles at him and nods. “Your friends are a lot.”</p>
<p class="p1">He chuckles. “Yeah. I’m not sure what more I could have done to warn you, honestly. But Raven and Echo are the last ones, so it’ll be better once we’re all sitting down and eating.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Well let’s go meet Raven and Echo, then,” Clarke says.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy and Clarke walk hand-in-hand into the hall with everyone else. Emori and Harper are looking appreciatively at Echo’s left ring finger, while Murphy hangs their coats and Echo waves to Monty and Jordan with her other hand. Raven turns to see Bellamy and smiles, rushing forward to give him a hug.</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s so good to see you!” Raven says, squeezing Bellamy’s arm. She looks past him to where Clarke is hovering behind him. “Is this Clarke?”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy turns and motions for Clarke to step forward. “Yeah. Clarke, meet Raven.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke and Raven shake hands.</p>
<p class="p1">“Let me tell you, I’m really glad you’re real,” Raven says before raising her voice to say, “because it means Murphy owes me twenty bucks!”</p>
<p class="p1">“I don’t owe you shit!” Murphy shouts back.</p>
<p class="p1">“Language, John!” Emori warns.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy rolls his eyes and feels his face heat up again, though he’s not sure yet what he should feel embarrassed about.</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m sorry, you had a bet going?” he asks.</p>
<p class="p1">Raven sighs as Murphy walks up to them. “Murphy bet me that Clarke wasn’t real and I took the bet because I said obviously she exists. The story of how you met is way too specific.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And I said it just sounded like you ripped off the plot of ‘Christmas Wrapping’,” Murphy says, digging in his wallet and handing Raven a twenty.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke laughs. “I guess it’s a pretty ridiculous story. But unlike in ‘Christmas Wrapping’, Bellamy waited almost an entire year to ask me out.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And for the record, I am also happy you’re real because Bellamy has been way happier since he started mentioning you,” Raven adds.</p>
<p class="p1">“Well I’m glad, because he makes me happy too.” Clarke smiles, rubbing Bellamy’s arm, and he feels his shoulders relax at her touch. “I hear congratulations are in order for you, though.”</p>
<p class="p1">Raven smiles, motioning for Echo to come over. “Thank you!”</p>
<p class="p1">Echo gives Bellamy a quick hug before wrapping an arm around Raven’s waist. “Oh, so Clarke is real after all.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Okay, I think we should stop saying that now,” Bellamy says. “Tell us about the proposal.”</p>
<p class="p1">Raven and Echo look at each other and laugh.</p>
<p class="p1">“So it’s funny,” Raven begins. “I had this whole cute proposal planned for Christmas Day. I figured we’d open our presents like normal, and then we’d go out for a walk and I would take her to the spot where we had our first kiss and propose there.”</p>
<p class="p1">“That’s so sweet,” Clarke says.</p>
<p class="p1">“Yeah, it would’ve been. But of course on Christmas morning we were opening presents and someone just had to randomly ask me to marry her when I was still in my pajamas and hadn’t brushed my hair.”</p>
<p class="p1">Echo shrugs, rubbing Raven’s shoulder. “The moment just felt right. And I still let you do your proposal plan later.”</p>
<p class="p1">Raven pouts. “Yeah, but I wanted to see your surprised face when it happened. Your fake surprise face is not the same.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I think you’ll complain less once we go pick out your ring tomorrow,” Echo says.</p>
<p class="p1">“Probably.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy chuckles. “I’m really happy for you guys.” The group chat freaked out on Christmas morning when the two of them sent a selfie of them grinning like idiots while Echo held up her left hand. Raven and Echo were an unexpected couple, but they work so well, and Bellamy’s glad that they’ve found each other.</p>
<p class="p1">“I would say we could eat, but I timed the meal based off Raven and Echo arriving at least half an hour late, so it’s not ready,” Murphy admits.</p>
<p class="p1">Raven pulls a bottle of tequila from her bag. “We have something to do while we wait.”</p>
<p class="p1">They all gather in the kitchen, catching up and trading small talk as Murphy finishes cooking. A few people offer to help, but Murphy won’t let them. He is very territorial of his kitchen, which has actually stayed consistent since college. And now he has an even nicer kitchen to be territorial over, compared to the kitchen in the shitty apartment he and Bellamy had together senior year.</p>
<p class="p1">About twenty minutes later, everyone sits down to dinner. Murphy has outdone himself this year, with a delicious roasted chicken, mac and cheese, even some homemade rolls.</p>
<p class="p1">“Murphy, everything is delicious!” Clarke says as she scoops herself some more mac and cheese.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy smiles, which makes Bellamy laugh. He never gets tired of compliments on his food. “Thanks. You never go hungry when you step foot in the Murphy house.”</p>
<p class="p1">Monty shakes his head. “Murphy’s gonna be the dad that thrives off of children coming to his house to eat.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Damn right, I am.”</p>
<p class="p1">“You’re not very good at this don’t curse for the baby thing, are you?” Bellamy wonders aloud.</p>
<p class="p1">“Trust me, this is an improvement,” Emori says, patting Murphy’s hand.</p>
<p class="p1">“So Clarke,” Raven starts, “what’s your favorite thing about Bellamy?”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy trains his eyes on his plate. Of all the things he’d been looking forward to with Clarke meeting his friends, them grilling her was not on the list. He knew they’d be excited about it, since he’s never brought anyone home, but he doesn’t want them to make too big a deal out of it. He’s not sure why he expected that of his friends, though. They’re the most extra group of people he’s ever met.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke knocks her knee against Bellamy’s under the table. He looks up at her to see a smile on her face, so at least she’s taking the whole thing in stride.</p>
<p class="p1">“I love how much he cares about things,” she answers. “Even the things that I feel like most people take for granted. And he’s always listening, too.”</p>
<p class="p1">Harper nods. “Bellamy is an amazing listener. Back in college, he remembered something random I told him about wanting to get a good present for my grandma, and then the next time we had class he came back with a list of book suggestions that she might be interested in.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Aww, so you were thoughtful even back then?” Clarke asks.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy shakes his head. “I like to think I have always been thoughtful, but I don’t pay myself compliments the way Murphy does.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Who’s gonna love you if you don’t love yourself first?” Murphy says.</p>
<p class="p1">“I want to hear more about Bellamy in college!” Clarke says. “He tells me stories, but I feel like I’ve never gotten the full picture because he wants to make himself look good.”</p>
<p class="p1">Everyone laughs and Bellamy’s face heats up again. He wasn’t all that interesting in college and besides a few run of the mill hook-up stories from his college years, he’d say there’s nothing all that incriminating that he wouldn’t want his girlfriend to hear.</p>
<p class="p1">“Back in college, Bellamy was the guy everyone was obsessed with,” Monty chimes in. “That is, until he’d open his mouth.”</p>
<p class="p1">“People thought he was so hot, then once they found out he’s a huge nerd they’d lose interest,” Raven adds.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy chuckles. He’s far enough past college that he doesn’t care that Clarke is hearing about this. And it’s not like he cared all that much when people seemed to lose interest in him back then. If anything, it just meant they weren’t worth it. And Bellamy didn’t have patience for that, even when he was in college and not looking for anything serious.</p>
<p class="p1">“Really? I feel like finding out Bellamy is a huge nerd is what made me like him even more,” Clarke says.</p>
<p class="p1">He doesn’t miss the nods his friends give each other at Clarke’s response. He knows they’re testing her, but it seems like she’s passing so far. He knew she would. She’s amazing, and his friends are clearly getting the chance to see that.</p>
<p class="p1">Once dinner is over and the table is cleared, everyone goes to the living room to play games. Harper is excited that they can do even teams this year, since last year she sat out and just held Jordan.</p>
<p class="p1">“Usually we don’t let couples team up, but since it’s your first time, you can be with Bellamy, Clarke,” Emori says.</p>
<p class="p1">“Did Bellamy warn you that Raven and Monty get so competitive it’s almost scary?” Echo asks.</p>
<p class="p1">“He said you all take charades very seriously,” Clarke says.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy snorts. “That’s a nice way of putting it.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy almost shudders thinking back to one of their earlier Christmas parties where Raven and Monty weren’t on the same team. It ended with a lot of tears, though none of the tears were Raven’s or Monty’s. From then on they decided it might be easier to just put them both together rather than have them play separately.</p>
<p class="p1">“We’ve found that working together now is actually to our advantage,” Raven says. “There haven’t been any real fights in years.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy claps his hands together, ready for this conversation to end. “Okay, let’s split up into teams before we scare Clarke out of playing, shall we?”</p>
<p class="p1">They split into teams; Bellamy with Clarke, Raven with Monty, Harper with Emori, and Murphy with Echo. Every so often, Bellamy turns to Clarke just to make sure she’s okay, but she’s so engrossed in the game that she doesn’t even notice him doing it. He lets out a sigh of relief. She does seem to be having a good time. After a while it seems like he’s the one who’s the most nervous about this whole evening.</p>
<p class="p1">In an upset, Murphy and Echo win charades. Everyone is confused when it happens, seeing as they really bungled their first few turns, but they racked up enough points to take the lead and win the whole thing. Raven and Monty are crushed, but they still vow that they’ll win next year.</p>
<p class="p1">Things calm down as the night continues. Murphy brings out dessert with help from Clarke and they get into their white elephant exchange. It’s not as contentious as it’s been in past years, but Bellamy suspects that people are on their best behavior since it’s Clarke’s first time. Once all the presents have been opened, Bellamy ends up with a stuffed animal that was clearly meant for a baby. He makes a mental note to discreetly ask Emori if she wants to trade before he leaves, since he figures she might want the toy for her newborn daughter, and her art history coffee table book seems more his speed. Murphy got the mini waffle iron that Bellamy picked out, which brought both Bellamy and Murphy a great deal of joy.</p>
<p class="p1">“Mori, I’m gonna turn so many things into waffles!” he shouts to her from across the room.</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m happy for you, baby!” Emori shouts back from her place on the couch. She and the other ladies are sitting in the living room with Clarke, while Bellamy, Murphy, and Monty have moved into the kitchen as they cleared away dessert.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke is holding Jordan in her lap, now that he’s finally warmed up enough to enjoy everyone’s company. Bellamy can’t help but grin seeing Clarke interact with a baby. Warmth floods his chest, thinking about her doing that with their own kids one day. She’s a natural, which makes sense since she’s a pediatric nurse. But it’s different seeing her in action and surrounded by his friends. She fits in perfectly, and Bellamy can’t help but smile to himself at how much having her here this evening means to him.</p>
<p class="p1">“Hey, earth to Bellamy,” Murphy says, snapping Bellamy out of his trance.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy blushes, but tunes back in to the conversation he was having with Murphy and Monty. They’re both smiling at him, and Bellamy can’t help but roll his eyes at their knowing looks.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy chuckles. “You are so far gone on her, it’s ridiculous.”</p>
<p class="p1">“That’s rich, coming from someone who didn’t think she existed before she showed up on your doorstep.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And now she’s been here for a couple hours and you two are clearly in love.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I mean you can’t fault us for being excited, we’ve never seen you like this before,” Monty points out.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy nods. “True. But I’d say that I’m the normal one out of our group, and you guys are just weird. I don’t think I’ve ever met such a small concentration of people that just dated each other and decided that was it for them.”</p>
<p class="p1">Monty shrugs. “When you know, you know.”</p>
<p class="p1">“We’re happy for you, man. Seriously,” Murphy adds.</p>
<p class="p1">“Thanks.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And when we were getting dessert I told her if she hurts you she’ll have to answer to me.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy groans. “What the fuck, Murphy?”</p>
<p class="p1">“Don’t worry, she took it in stride. Just gushed about how much she loves you. It was pretty gross. But it sounds like we haven’t scared her away, if that’s what you were wondering.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Good. Because I’d like for her to come back.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And we want her to,” Monty adds. “She’s really great, Bellamy.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy chuckles. “I can almost see you planning your wedding in your head.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy snorts, ignoring the way his stomach flips at the suggestion of marrying Clarke. He kind of loves the idea.</p>
<p class="p1">“I think I’d like to get through at least a year of dating her before I think too hard about marriage. And you’re one to talk, seeing as you and Emori don’t seem to be in any rush to get married.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy holds up a finger to his mouth before mumbling, “You didn’t hear it from me, but I’m proposing on the 30th.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy and Monty exchange looks of shock. Murphy and Emori had always seemed vehemently against marriage, or at least the way they made fun of Monty and Harper made it seem like they were.</p>
<p class="p1">“What brought this on?” Monty asks.</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy shrugs. “I’ve been wanting to for a while. Honestly, I had planned to right around the time we found out Emori was pregnant, but I didn’t want to do it then and have it seem like I was only doing it because of the baby. But the 30th is the anniversary of the day we said ‘I love you’ senior year. So that seems like the right moment.”</p>
<p class="p1">“That’s the most romantic thing I have ever heard you say,” Bellamy says.</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m more of a romantic than I let on.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Well we all know she’ll say yes, so congrats in advance,” Monty says as he pats Murphy on the shoulder.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy loves these moments he has with his friends. He can’t imagine his life without Monty and Murphy in it, and he’s never been more grateful that they’ve stuck around this long. They’ve all grown tremendously since college, and it’s almost crazy to picture the three of them sitting together, all in love, and completely happy with where they are in life. It’s something Bellamy never imagined for himself, but he wouldn’t have it any other way.</p>
<p class="p1">The evening starts to die down as Harper and Monty get ready to leave. It’s past Jordan’s bedtime, and they both look a little tired themselves.</p>
<p class="p1">“You’ll have this to look forward to very soon,” Monty says as he hugs Emori goodbye.</p>
<p class="p1">“Honestly, I can’t wait,” Emori admits.</p>
<p class="p1">“Okay, I never got a chance to say anything, but I’ll bite,” Harper says once Jordan is in his coat. “What’s with the matching outfits?”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy frowns. “You don’t like them? It’s cute.”</p>
<p class="p1">Raven laughs. “You two have really lost your edge.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Yeah, I’m not even sure Harper and I would wear something like that,” Monty says with a smirk.</p>
<p class="p1">“We spent all of college being cool. I’m ready to embarrass my children, I don’t care what any of you say.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy laughs. “Okay, <em>dad</em>!”</p>
<p class="p1">Emori shakes her head. “You guys are just jealous.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Yeah, that’s it,” Echo mumbles under her breath.</p>
<p class="p1">“What matters is that you guys love them,” Clarke chimes in.</p>
<p class="p1">“Thank you, Clarke!” Murphy says. “Finally, someone who gets it.”</p>
<p class="p1">Harper rolls her eyes before bringing Bellamy in for a hug.</p>
<p class="p1">“It was good seeing you,” Bellamy says as they pull away.</p>
<p class="p1">“You too.” Harper smiles before adding, “Clarke’s a keeper.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy smiles. “Yeah, I think so, too.”</p>
<p class="p1">Once Monty and Harper say their goodbyes, the night would usually wind down with Echo and Emori in some sort of drinking game, but that tradition can’t go on as planned this year, given how pregnant Emori is. They settle for hot chocolate instead.</p>
<p class="p1">It’s quieter now, as they all sit in the living room, telling a few stories from college for Clarke. Thankfully they’re not that embarrassing, so Bellamy is happy to let them continue. Clarke’s head is resting on his shoulder and he leans into her touch. They sip their drinks and every now and again, he turns to look at her. Her eyes are drooping as if she’s getting tired, but she has a content smile on her face. Bellamy’s heart warms at the sight, and he’s so glad that he was able to bring his girlfriend to meet some of the most important people in his life. In the past year, she’s become another of the most important people in his life and it’s a big moment to be able to bring together two facets of what make him happy.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy pats her leg, and she lifts her head to look up at him. He presses a kiss to her forehead.</p>
<p class="p1">“You’re looking a little sleepy,” he says. “Do you wanna get ready to go soon?”</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m good to go when you are,” she answers. “But it seemed like you were having a nice time catching up with your friends.”</p>
<p class="p1">“We can go. My place?”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke nods. Bellamy pats her leg one last time before standing up from the couch.</p>
<p class="p1">“This has been fun, but I think we’re gonna get ready to go.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Let me get you some cookies for the road,” Murphy says, standing up from his armchair and heading to the kitchen.</p>
<p class="p1">“Clarke, it was so nice to meet you!” Emori says as she lifts herself up from her seat.</p>
<p class="p1">“It was nice to meet you, too! Thank you so much for having me, it was wonderful.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Anyone who’s important to Bellamy is always welcome. Hopefully we’ll see you again next year.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke chuckles. “Well I don’t plan on going anywhere, I’ll say that much.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I’m sure we’ll see you before then, though,” Raven says. “We don’t make a big deal out of other holidays the way we do with Christmas, but we hang out from time to time.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Bellamy, you should bring her to the pub crawl on St. Patrick’s Day!” Echo suggests.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke looks at Bellamy, an eyebrow raised. “A pub crawl?”</p>
<p class="p1">He chuckles. “It’s not nearly as exciting anymore now that Echo and Emori are the only ones that can hang. And I doubt Emori will be up for it this year.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Hey! Don’t count me out just yet, I could bounce back by then.”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy comes back in from the kitchen with a baggie of cookies that he hands to Clarke. “We’re thinking of some low key alternatives this year.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke nods, looking down at the package that Murphy has just handed her. “Do you have a customized seal?”</p>
<p class="p1">“Wouldn’t be Christmas without it!”</p>
<p class="p1">Murphy gets Bellamy and Clarke’s coats as they finish up their goodbyes.</p>
<p class="p1">“We’ll see you around, Clarke,” Murphy says as he closes the door behind them.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy lets out a breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding once he and Clarke are alone again. He turns to her, not sure what to expect. She still looks tired, but not too scarred after that experience.</p>
<p class="p1">“So that was probably a lot,” he says as he begins making his way to the car.</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke laughs. “Maybe a tad. But you did say they’re a loud group.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I don’t think I ever realized how loud they are until today, honestly. We’ve never had a new person before. I probably could have prepared you a bit better.”</p>
<p class="p1">She takes his hands in hers. “Bellamy, it’s okay. I had a nice time. And it was so nice to see you around all your friends. They’re a lot, but they all love you, and I loved watching you guys together.”</p>
<p class="p1">He nods, letting Clarke’s words calm him. He’s overthinking this and he doesn’t need to, so he leans in to kiss her. “I love you.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I love you, too.”</p>
<p class="p1">He lets go of her hand to go around to his side and get into the car. They’re quiet as they pull out of the driveway, but Bellamy speaks again once they’re out on the road.</p>
<p class="p1">“It seems like everyone really liked you.”</p>
<p class="p1">“You think so? It was hard to tell with a couple of them. Raven and Echo have excellent poker faces.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy nods. “They do. But they liked you. I could tell.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke chuckles. “I’ll take your word for it.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And I’m sorry if Murphy said anything weird to you while you were helping him with dessert.”</p>
<p class="p1">“It wasn’t too bad. He’s clearly protective of you.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy shrugs. “He’s my best friend, so I know he can get a little funny about things, but he means well.”</p>
<p class="p1">Clarke rests a hand on his knee. “Now look who’s nervous.”</p>
<p class="p1">They laugh, Bellamy loosening up as he continues the familiar route back to his apartment.</p>
<p class="p1">“I understand, Bell,” Clarke continues. “If anything, it was kind of funny. It was hard to take much of what Murphy was saying seriously with that ridiculous apron he had on, though.”</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy laughs. “Yeah, he and Emori have done a real 180 since our college days. But I think it suits them. They’re definitely ready to be parents.”</p>
<p class="p1">“So is the next friend gathering on St. Patrick’s Day, or is there another one in between that?”</p>
<p class="p1">“Well St. Patrick’s Day is Echo’s favorite, so that’s why she mentioned it. It’s how I know she liked you, she takes that outing very seriously.”</p>
<p class="p1">He doesn’t miss the little fist pump that Clarke makes at this news and he smiles, but keeps his eyes on the road.</p>
<p class="p1">“We’ll probably have an impromptu thing after the baby gets here. And we don’t always hang out as the full group. I’m assuming we’ll probably see Raven and Echo a bit more than Monty and Harper and Murphy and Emori though, since they don’t have children.”</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s really cute that you guys are all still friends after all these years,” Clarke says.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy nods. “Yeah. It’s lucky that we never really drifted apart. It meant a lot that you got to meet them tonight. They’re important to me, and you’re important to me.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Feels nice to be so special. And it meant a lot that you wanted me to meet them. Thank you for inviting me.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Of course. I wouldn’t have had it any other way.”</p>
<p class="p1">They spend the rest of the car ride laughing about different moments from the night. Bellamy tries to explain a few of the inside jokes that probably went over Clarke’s head, but they’re definitely not as funny to her as they are to the rest of the group. They’ll just have to make some new ones with her now that she’s a part of it.</p>
<p class="p1">Bellamy is glad the evening went so well. He’s glad that Clarke is the first person he brought to the Christmas party and he doesn’t want to jinx it, but he thinks she could be the one he brings forever. The idea of that excites him, of her being a part of their group and getting to make new memories with her there as well. It’s everything he could have ever wanted, and it was so worth all the forever single jokes to find the perfect person to finally bring home.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>Hope you guys liked it! Let me know what you think.</p>
<p>If you liked what you see, don't forget I am writing for t100 Fic for BLM! My primary ship is Memori, but I also write Bellarke, Murven, and Clurphy, though those last three tend to only be in AU settings. But if you want to prompt me something and want to be sure I'd be into it, you can always send me an ask or DM beforehand. And check out <a href="https://t100fic-for-blm.carrd.co/">our carrd</a> for more info!</p>
<p>And as always, you can come find me on <a href="https://queenemori.tumblr.com/">Tumblr</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/queen_emori">Twitter</a>.</p></blockquote></div></div>
</body>
</html>